The Love of a Father, a Mother and a Son by R George Riggon

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Synopsis

Bornin Montpelier in the parish of Hanover, Jamaica,during the 1920s, Roland 'Ron' Riggan married Lize Patterson and started afamily. He joined the exodus of young men going to Britain from the island during the1950s and drifted into boozing and women. When he fathered a child with anEnglish woman Lize decided that their life would not be thrown away so easily.She raised the passage for their oldest child, Bibs, to travel to Britain in thehope that she would find work and assist Ron to bring over the remainingchildren. The teenager soon found a husband and fell pregnant. Lize resorted toreach Englandherself without the prior knowledge of Ron. She then set about working to bringthe remaining children to Britain. WhenKen had a change of heart and decided to remain on the island in the ministryof the church each of the other children refused to rejoin their parents. Lizefell pregnant at age 40. Upon receiving news that teenage daughter Erva wasdrifting out of the control, she defied the advice of doctors to travel home byship. She then resorted to bring Erva back home. Ron returned home to hisfamily but after only a few months, returned to Britain alone and remained apartfrom his wife for the next thirteen years. The relationship was reconciled whenLize returned to Britainand persuaded Ron to return with her to the island for their retirement. Thirdoldest child, Vandley, was lost to the family in North Carolina, USA.Her family has continued to live closely in the ethos of care and support.

Born into a migrant
Jamaican family, R. George Riggon started out on a personal quest to trace the
historical movement and roots of his own family in searches that involved the
use of historical records of births, deaths and marriages in Africa, Jamaica,
USA, Canada and Britain. A desire to explore and share the rich source of
historical information on African and Caribbean family genealogy between as
many people as possible was the main motivation behind these works.
The author was raised
and educated in England. He attended the University of Central England in
Birmingham and Warwick University where he obtained a first degree in Sociology
and a Masters in Race and Ethnic Studies respectively. Postgraduate training in
research and management forms the basis of his professional work in public and
community service sectors.
His two books: Living
As a Riggan and The Love of a Father, A Mother and A Son
celebrates the importance of family as an essential source of support and
inspiration for present and future generations. Their publication also
coincided with the bicentennial year since slave trading between the continent
of Africa and the European controlled colonies of the Caribbean was ended in
1807.